Quarters of the Marches

By James Walker

A piece of throwaway canon in S3 refers to the "Wardens of The Four
Quarters" - senior Dreamers responsible for Blandine's March. The line has
fascinated me, and I've finally worked out how to Quarter the Vale.

Each Quarter of Blandine's March responds to two choirs of angels; they
treat the Quarter as a Domain (Perception checks to detect any Disturbance
they create from outside the Quarter have a -5 penalty) and the Dreamers
they tend here are usually closer in outlook to the angels. Usually, the two
choirs will be ones who normally suffer personality clashes - apparently the
conflict generated is an important part of the nature of The Quarters.

Interestingly, one band of demons will also have a link to the Quarter -
every point of dissonance the demon has (from Band dissonance only) grants
-1 penalty to detect the demon's Disturbance - even by beings who are also
inside the Quarter.

Of course, Beleth's March is also Quartered, with two Bands treating the
Quarter as a domain, and one choir benefiting when dissonant.
The borders between Quarters are invisible; Celestials know when they have
entered or left "their" Quarter, but they are otherwise unremarkable.

The Quarter of Words

Home to both Seraphim and Mercurians, the Quarter of Words attracts dreamers
who seek to fulfil their Dreams by talking; inspiring speeches, impassioned
debates and touching heartfelt phrases bring a dreamer here. A Dreamshaping
roll here by either a Seraph of Mercurian allows the angel to replay
conversation which has recently influenced the dreamer; the angel can
resonate on the speakers (treat as a recording), and gift the dreamer with
the information gained from the resonance. The choirs rarely agree on what
is appropriate - the Truth of a Seraph may contradict and be contradicted by
the social connections of a Mercurian as what people say and what they
really care about are often unrelated.

The Quarter of Words borders the Near Marches; the ephemeral nature of words
links it to the wilder regions of The Marches. Dissonant Djinn often flee
here; obsessed with the thoughts of others, they seek to manipulate the
dreamers - and either admit their feelings and seek Redemption, or are
destroyed.

The Quarter of Hopes

Watched over by Elohim and Menunim, the dreamers in the Quarter of Hopes are
drawn onwards by the potential of the future - or better yet of the present.

Here they may be cheered on by Menunim - or have their hopes gently
redirected by an Elohite, to a more achievable goal. The Quarter of Hopes
adjoins the Border Marches; as the dreamers hopes become reality, their
dreamscape slowly, night by night, drifts closer to the Quarter of Deeds. A
Balseraph whose lies have unwound will sometimes head here to destroy the
human who 'slandered' them, and find the domain aids them - for they too
have hopes. The angels here are not so forgiving!

The Quarter of Deeds

Under the shadow of Gabriel's volcano is the realm of those who strive for
victory, and dream strong dreams of success. Only those who have the
confidence to succeed dream here; to be shown a swifter route by Ofanim, or
to be slowed down, and shown a more ethical path by Blandine's Malakim.

Pachadim who have repeatedly failed to break the wills of their human
'victims' sometimes follow the dreamers here, seeking a resolution - whether
that be Redemption, the Pachadite's death - or the soul death of the
dreamer.

The Quarter of Cares

Wedged in by the Near and Border Marches, the dreamers here dream tired
dreams, seeking a brief nightly respite from their daily burdens. Many
legends of 'little helpers' or stories of 'sleepwalking' start here, as

Kyriotates in this Quarter may use their resonance to possess a dreamer's
body, handling tasks for the human that night while the careworn mortal gets
a decent night's sleep. The Cherubim who also guard this Quarter regards
this as 'band aid treatment' and guide the dreams of their charges, to find
solutions to the many problems which face them. An Impudite who has seen too
many needless deaths may find himself here; some seek redemption; others
simply seek to sleep; eventually the Quarter forms a small domain around the
Impudite, where they can sleep until Judgement Day, and have their
dissonance stripped away by the resurrection of the dead.

And then there is Beleth's realm:

The Quarter of Hearts

Closest to the Border Marches, this domain is filled by those who have been
entranced by evil. Here Beleth's Impudites may spend a half hour or more in
a Dreamscape, using the Ethereal Song of Projection to completely bend a
human's mind to their will, while Balseraphs smother their victims with the
Fear of being "left out", of not being good enough for the Balseraph.

Dissonant Elohim are sometimes drawn here; the ability to lash out as those
they have lost their objectivity over lures them - as a stepping stone to
Hell. Soldiers of Hell are often recruited here, and the less openly evil
ethereals often work here, helping humans to love - demons.

The Quarter of Passions

Dreamers here have their most cherished hopes and dreams drawn out to be
mocked and belittled by Pachadim, or are torn down by the fury of the
Habbalah, little more than marionettes dancing to the Punisher's tune. A
dreamer's only hope here is that the demons will argue over him - that a
Pachadite will accuse the Habbalite of clumsy heavy handedness, while the
Habbalite seeks to punish the lily livered demon who seems to think that he
serves Dark Humor. But such a respite will only be a chance to cower before
the demons, until the winner once again turns his attention to the luckless
mortal - unless the mortal flees to the adjoining Near Marches, and wanders
into the domains of the Old gods.

The Quarter of Bonds

Pained by an unfulfilled Geas; terrified by a Stalker; the dreamers hear the
demons demands in their nightmares, seek release from the unbreakable bonds.
Any human who feels trapped, enslaved or controlled may end up here, to be a
demonic plaything, in a Quarter surrounded on all sides: by the other three
Quarters, and by Beleth's Tower.

Although normally friendly, Djinn and Lilim find their different approaches
do not gel well here. Any time a Djinn enters the dream of his attuned, the
dreamscape will drift here (after being brought to Beleth's realm, should
that be necessary); while any dreamer can easily leave if a Lilim is in his
dreamscape. This clash ignores a simple, dark truth: if a Lilim is in the
dreamscape, the dreamer may indeed make a Will roll to wake, or to leave
Beleth's march, true; and will succeed whether the roll is made or failed;
but if the roll is failed they will owe a Geas to the Lilim equal to the CD
of the failed roll..which means that the following night, they will almost
certainly return here. If a Lilim is in a human's dreamscape in this
Quarter, the only way to avoid the risk of a geas is to refuse to leave;
something the human will instinctively know.

A dissonant Ofanite will sometimes be found here, bound by something that
keeps them from moving on - and sometimes they find destroying that
something is the simplest solution.

The Quarter of Pains

Stalked by Calabim and Shedim, this Quarter is a place of raw brutality.
Dreamers here are invariably warped by mental Disadvantages, inflicted by
repeated Ethereal "deaths", and frequently insane. While the demons slowly
tear apart their victims, enjoying their victims pain, and letting the
disturbance gradually fade, Soldiers and Dreamshades of Nightmares
methodically butcher their way through the Quarter, seeking to meet their
nightly quota of Ethereal 'kills'. Should a Mercurian succumb to temptation
and attack a human while they sleep, the dreamscape will move into this
Quarter, and the dissonance the Mercurian gains will partially mask the
Disturbance. The Quarter of Pains stretches from Beleth's Tower to The Near
Marches; before the death of Mariel - or perhaps of Vephar? - the River
Lethe ran through this Quarter; those who through themselves in had their
memories of torment removed, but woke in Hell: their bodies forgetting how
to breathe, their souls forgetting all that was bright and pure. Or perhaps
that is just a legend, and the truth is long forgotten - the Seraphim who
know will not speak, still overwhelmed by grief.